Mombasa

The first event of the day was a breakfast around eight in the morning, to which all came at different times, depending on what time who got up, as the idea is to leave immediately after breakfast, so the bags need to be packed. Agnese’s original plan had failed, that is, suddenly there were no snorkeling goers anymore. For this she was obviously not happy. Breakfast is served gradually, starting with tea, then the sausage with egg. After breakfast, we’re collecting our belongings together and are planning to go to the beach, but there is no car. We’re waiting, waiting, the driver is getting contacted, it turns out there are problems. Well fine, we leave the belongings with the hotel administrator, the precious things – computers, cameras – are stored separately, and go for a walk around the city.

The first goal is a bureau de change because almost all of our shillings are over. On the way we see something like gates designed as crossed elephant tusks in Moi Avenue. Such gates are for each traffic lane. Next we find a money exchange point and just in time, because a short yet pretty strong rain arrives. We decide to look around the old town, and as soon as the car will be ready, to go to the beach. While walking around the old town, Fort Jesus, which is located on Mombasa port, cannot be overlooked of course. To be honest, the fort would require a reconstruction, because right now it is in a pretty bad state. The architecture of Old Town is different from the rest of Mombasa, you can just have a kind of a feel of antiquity.

Of course, like in a popular tourist place all kinds of souvenir shops are in abundance. We also get a guide, he is a local, who, in exchange for that we will have lunch in his family’s restaurant, undertake to show us round the old town. We see a port where one can spot some ships and fishing boats, we go to the fish market, which was empty in the afternoon, however. Here one must come in the morning. Well and then the lunch in “Rozina House Restaurant”, which was kind of our most expensive meal on this trip. Lunch was also very good.

Given that the car at that time was still not ready, we decided to take a matatu and go to Nyali Beach. Beach in Kenyan style, there is nothing superfluous. On the other hand, it is possible to ride a camel. At first, however, I did not get it, why all the locals cling along the very waterfront and are minimally going deeper into the ocean, but the answer could soon be felt by foot. Whether they had any sea urchins or anything else – as the warm waters are known to be rich in terms of coastal fauna species – but beyond a certain limit one could not wade into the ocean without risking impaling feet. While a part of the group was bathing, to the other part that is sitting in the shade under the palm trees a few locals arrive and offer coconuts. The offer is accepted and soon they bring a sack of coconuts, which also get opened on the spot. Coconut water tastes like the local Latvian birch juice, in my opinion, just as tasteless.

Then the time is over and we have to leave, the driver has collected our belongings from the hotel and we drive away from Mombasa. Along the way, we pop into the local Akamba wood-carving workshop, where a diversity of animal figurines and bowls get made from wood. Masters work in low wooden huts, each doing his job as on an assembly line, just there is none such. But the same principle, one carves a shape, another one paints or does something else. Of course as in all manufacturing processes there are also some faulty ones, which they try to sell to us on the spot. There is also a gift shop where one can buy all kinds of products without bargaining. So there we all shop. Then out of Mombasa and on to Voi, where the next overnight stay is intended.

We arrive in Voi late in the evening, as usual. The hotel, where we stay, is a three-storey building with a hole in the middle; the hole is surrounded by narrow hallways and rooms with completely incomprehensible numbering. There are two beds in the rooms, a shower and a toilet. Given that we arrived late, everyone is tired, so pretty quickly, without any special cooking or looking for dinner, we go to bed. The day is over.